Census brings good news for retailers

SYDNEY: The results of the latest national Census were released today revealing an increase in population and a growing number of households, which social analyst, Mark McCrindle, says is good news for the country’s electrical retailers.

The national Census highlighted the changing face of the nation, with family households down four per cent to 67 per cent, group households down 0.4 per cent to 3.7 per cent, single occupancy dwellings up 1.0 per cent to 23 per cent and the median age now set at 37 years old.

“It’s critical for retailers to understand the changing snapshot of the nation – who we are by way of our age and our make-up, where we’re living, where we’ve come from and where we’re going to,” McCrindle told Current.com.au today.

“One of the key features of the census – and it’s been coming for some time – is the aging of the population. That’s got serious implication for retailers in regards to staffing and also in terms of the changing consumer demand.

“The other major factor here is the changing household structure. We’ve gone from four people per household back in 1960 and now you see we’re down to 3.1. Additionally, they’re forecasting that in 2027 we’ll be down to 2.2 to 2.3 people per household,” he said.

According to McCrindle, despite a drop in the number of people living within each household, Australia now has more households, meaning retailers will be able to sell more products.

The Census also revealed that more Australians are looking to move out of the cities and closer to the coastal areas, with 1.8 per cent of the population making the seachange.

“People are moving around more frequently than we did a few decades ago, and when people move it’s often a time when they upgrade the goods in their homes, so it’s a great figure for retailers.

“And let’s not forget that Australia’s population is growing, which means we have an increased population, increased purchasing frequency and increased number of households, so I think these figures augur well for retailers,” he said.

Other interesting stats to come out of the Census include the increase in median weekly household income from $600-$699 per week to $1,000-$1,119 and the rise in total families across the country to 5,219,168, up 12 per cent.